This weekend's Hungarian GP will conducted underneath an understandably sombre cloud. No matter what happens over the course of the coming days, nothing will be able to displace the feeling of unease that comes from burying a fellow racer earlier in the week. It is going to be a very surreal grand prix, and even though I'm just an viewer from the comfort of the sofa, it will be like no other GP weekend I've sat through. It is something that none of the current grid will have endured, since none of them were competing at the weekend following the infamous Imola GP of 1994 that claimed the lives of Senna and Ratzenberger. Max Verstappen wasn't even born - his entire life fits into the intervening period. Drivers, teams, and fans alike have all come forward to honour what Bianchi gave to the sport, even in the short time he was in it. F1 has confirmed that there will be a minute's silence before the start of the race on Sunday - as observed by Japan's SuperFormula and IndyCar last weekend.
As deservingly domineering as the Bianchi story is, other news has surfaced in the three week break since the British GP. A time when we would have had the German GP - but that was cancelled due to financial difficulties. Sauber have announced that they will be retaining both their drivers for 2016, which in the current climate is quite an early announcement - especially since the team managed to hire three drivers for two seats at the start of this season. But this doesn't put an end to the driver speculation up and down the grid - the highest profile rumours surround Ferrari and what they plan to do with Raikkonen. Barring Bahrain, and some of Britain, the Finn has had a slightly off-colour season - much in the same way he did when paired against Alonso last year. A spanish publication has claimed that a deal between Ferrari and Bottas has been made to replace Kimi - a position that the Ferrari team revealed earlier in the week was earmarked for Jules Bianchi...
Budapest
In many respects it is fitting that we come to Hungary this weekend, as it generally provides a calm and methodical race. The layout doesn't lend itself to being high on the excitement scale, but is enjoyable to drive in video game format. From that perspective the Hungarian GP bears a resemblance to Magny Cours and Imola - where the layout far and away out strips the racing that takes place upon it, because it is narrow and flowing with only one usable racing line. But of course, if you introduce a little bit of precipitation and it becomes a whole different ball game, and brings the race completely to life. It was damp conditions that engineered Jenson Buttons' first victory - for Honda - I don't see Jenson's reunion with the Japanese manufacturer being quite so successful in 2015.
The track itself starts with a steep descent down to turn one - a corner which was extended in 2003 to form a tighter hairpin turn, to promote overtaking which was notably lacking under the previous configuration. The changes didn't necessarily have the desired consequences - but fear not all the world's problems can be solved with DRS... Turn two is a short straight away and is a gentle curving 180 degree corner which falls away on the exit. Placing the car coming out of turn two dictates the entry to the fast turn three at the bottom of the descent. The corner where Ericsson paid a visit to the barrier, releasing the safety car and completely changing the complexion of the race. A steep climb leads from the exit of turn three up to turn four - where the track curves right before left-hander at the top of the climb. A corner that saw Grosjean penalised for a magnificent pass on Felipe Massa in 2013 - a similar ruling to the one that cost Alex Rossi several places in the Silverstone GP2 sorint race.
At the top of the hill, a technical turn five is cambered nicely to guide the cars round towards the turn 6/7 chicane. A chicane which does seem out of place on the fast flowing circuit - as it is slow and cumbersome with mountainous curbs. But unlike the chicane at the Barcelona circuit - I can tolerate this one, probably because it has always been there so I've become accustomed to it. It does also add a different sort of challenge to the lap. After the chicane a series of sweeping high speed corners form the rest of the middle sector - these are the corners that the yearly visit to the Budapest circuit is remembered for. Cars dance from one side of the track to the other as they navigate the narrow ribbon of tarmac between the grass. It is nice to see a track that still has grass at the side of the road... at least most of the way round. The final part of the section has grown a tarmac expanse over the past couple of years however, where a lot of grass and gravel used to be.
The final part of the lap starts off with a sharpened righ hander - another element of the 2003 facelift aiming at adding more overtaking opportunities. The original corner was better, but the replacement isn't that bad - similar in profile to turn four at Sepang. The last two corners are a pair of mirrored 180 degree curves, the first of which is the opposite number to turn two - which ascends back to the height of the start/finish line. While the final turn was a rough reflection of turn one - before the first corner was modified.
The Form Guide
Despite the three week break, I don't think too many teams have planned major upgrades to their cars - so the relative performances will remain reasonably similar to what we have seen all season. But the nature of the track may help mask some of the issues certain engine manufacturers have been facing in recent events. Mercedes will almost certainly dominate proceedings and - barring a repeat of Hamilton's qualifying engine fire, and the safety car compromising Rosberg's race - will be on for an easy 1-2. Ferrari and Williams will be nearest competition as they have been for most of the season - unless of course if it rains, because like Gremlins, the Williams car just isn't the same once it gets wet. Performance in the showers that made up the British summer indicated that the team have not conquered the issues that made their cars much weaker once the rain arrives.
Behind the top three, it gets more interesting. Because Hungary is not a particularly power driven circuit - Red Bull and Toro Rosso will be competing strongly with Lotus and Force India for the remaining points positions. They might even be close enough to take a point or two away from any Williams or Ferrari having a bad day. There is even the chance that McLaren might have a ticket to this mid-field party - because the drawbacks of the Honda engine might not be so obvious. All of this is bad for Sauber, who have scored points mostly on the strength of their Ferrari engine, reduce the importance of the engine and they struggle to compete with their immediate rivals.
At the back of the grid will be Manor, and the feelings and sentiments of this weekend will be strongest in this garage - Manor are here today because of the actions of Jules Bianchi. The points he scored in Monaco 2014 were vital to the team's survival - to think I was initially quite annoyed at the way Jules barged Kamui out of the way in that race, but that pass became so very important in keeping the cars on the grid.
The Hungarian GP might not live up to some of the races that have come before it - and will likely fall short of the action of last years visit to Budapest, but no matter what happens, it is going to be difficult few days for all involved. Trackside or here on our sofas.
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